BEN SELVIN AND HIS ORCHESTRA

Biography

Benjamin Bernard Selvin (March 5, 1898 – July 15, 1980), born in New York City to Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, began playing violin before age seven and studied to become a concert violinist. He started his professional career at 15 as a fiddle player in New York City nightclubs, appearing on Broadway in 1913 and performing at venues like Rector’s, Reisenweber’s, and Healy’s. At 19, he organized his own orchestra, leading the Novelty Orchestra and achieving massive success with 'Dardanella' in 1919, which sold over 5 million copies and became the biggest-selling popular song in the first quarter-century of recorded music.[1][2][3]

Fun Facts

• Known as the 'Dean of Recorded Music,' Selvin recorded more sides (estimated 13,000-20,000) than any other artist, using dozens of pseudonyms like The Knickerbockers, The Columbians, and Barney Trimble and his Oklahomans for different labels.[3]
• He recorded the same song up to six times in a day with different arrangers to fulfill contracts across multiple labels.[4]
• Selvin played a key role in developing Muzak in the 1930s as Vice President of programming and helped 3M transition from vinyl to audio cassettes post-retirement.[2][3]
• Received a gold disk from the RIAA in 1963 for his recording achievements, as noted in Guinness Book of World Records.[3]

Members

• Charles Butterfield - trombone
• Earl Oliver
• William Covington Perry
• Adrian Rollini
• Ben Selvin - eponymous

Musical Connections

Key Collaborators

• Benny Goodman - hot jazz solos on Columbia recordings (pop songs produced as A&R Director) [1927-1934]
• Tommy Dorsey - hot jazz solos on Columbia recordings (pop songs produced as A&R Director) [1927-1934]
• Jimmy Dorsey - hot jazz solos on Columbia recordings (pop songs produced as A&R Director) [1927-1934]
• Frank Sinatra - A&R oversight at Columbia Records (recordings in late 1940s-early 1950s) [1947-1950s]
• Doris Day - A&R oversight at Columbia Records (recordings in late 1940s-early 1950s) [1947-1950s]
• Dinah Shore - A&R oversight at Columbia Records (recordings in late 1940s-early 1950s) [1947-1950s]
• John Serry, Sr. - musical director for recordings (RCA Victor and Dot Records albums) [1954-1956]

Artists Influenced

• George Melachrino - recruited for RCA Thesaurus library (easy listening recordings) [1954]
• Sammy Kaye - recruited for RCA Thesaurus library expansion (Big Band era content) [late 1950s]
• Lawrence Welk - recruited for RCA Thesaurus library expansion (Big Band era content) [late 1950s]

External Links

• Spotify
• Wikipedia
• MusicBrainz